Devices and methods for protecting the eye from adjacent skin treatments

ABSTRACT

A skin care apparatus suitable for use in proximity to a subject&#39;s eyes. The apparatus includes a treatment device and a stimulus device. Upon activation by a user, such as the subject or a technician, a stimulus delivered by the stimulus device causes the subject&#39;s eyelid to close prior to the administration of a skin care treatment by the treatment device.

BACKGROUND

Skin surrounding the eye is commonly covered with various cosmetics suchas eye liner, base coatings, coloring, etc. Such coatings must beremoved periodically, and removal techniques typically involve themanual application of chemicals, usually with a cotton pad or facecloth.These cleaning chemicals are not intended for direct exposure tosensitive eye tissues and it is normal for people to close theireye-lids to prevent exposure during cosmetic cleaning around the eye.

Increasingly, the skin surrounding the eye is also a target of cosmetictreatments for conditions such as wrinkle reduction, “bags” or darkcircle reduction, and other skin color and texture conditions concerningthe skin adjacent the eyes. These treatments can include sprays, soniccleansing, microdermabrasion, light, and the like. These treatments areless predictable to use than a facecloth, and therefore, couldaccidentally be activated while the eye is still open.

SUMMARY

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This summary is not intended to identify key features ofthe claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid indetermining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, a skin careapparatus for treating an area adjacent a subject's eye is provided. Theapparatus includes a body, a treatment device carried by the body, astimulus device carried by the body, a treatment switch, and a treatmentcontrol coupled to the treatment device and the stimulus device. In someembodiments, the treatment control, when signaled by the treatmentswitch, is configured to cause the stimulus device to generate astimulus and to administer the stimulus at the subject's eye suitablefor closure thereof, and thereafter, is configured to cause thetreatment device to administer a treatment to the area adjacent thesubject's eye.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a method isprovided for treating an area adjacent a subject's eye. The methodcomprises administering a stimulus at the subject's eye; and thereafteradministering a treatment to the area adjacent the subject's eye.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of thedisclosed subject matter will become more readily appreciated as thesame become better understood by reference to the following detaileddescription, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of one example of a skin care apparatus inaccordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the skin care apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of another example of a skin care apparatusin accordance with aspects of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of yet another example of a skin careapparatus in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appendeddrawings where like numerals reference like elements is intended as adescription of various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter andis not intended to represent the only embodiments. Each embodimentdescribed in this disclosure is provided merely as an example orillustration and should not be construed as preferred or advantageousover other embodiments. The illustrative examples provided herein arenot intended to be exhaustive or to limit the claimed subject matter tothe precise forms disclosed.

The following discussion provides examples that relate to skin care. Inparticular, some examples described herein are directed to skin caredevices that provide techniques for forcing the eye lids of a subject toclose just prior to the administration of a skin care treatment. Theskin care treatments can include but are not limited to cosmeticcleaning around the eye, laser treatment, ultrasound, microdermabrasion,etc. In the examples that follow, the devices and methods employtechniques that stimulate the eye's natural blink reflex. This stimuluscan be a flash of light, a puff of air, a burst of sound or pressure,though other stimulus techniques could be used.

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of one or more embodiments ofthe present disclosure. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art,however, that many embodiments of the present disclosure may bepracticed without some or all of the specific details. In someinstances, well-known process steps have not been described in detail inorder not to unnecessarily obscure various aspects of the presentdisclosure. Further, it will be appreciated that embodiments of thepresent disclosure may employ any combination of features describedherein.

Turning now to FIG. 1, there is shown one example of a skin careapparatus generally designated 20, formed in accordance with aspects ofthe present disclosure. The skin care apparatus 20 is suitable for usein proximity to a subject's eyes. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, theapparatus 20 includes an ergonomic body 24, the rearward portion ofwhich forms a handle 28. A treatment head 32 is disposed at the forwardend of the body 24. The treatment head 32 includes a treatmentapplicator 36 that administers a treatment to a skin region adjacent toor surrounding the subject's eye, and a stimulus applicator 40 thatadministers a stimulus in order to stimulate the eye's natural blinkreflex. As will be described in more detail below, upon activation by auser, such as the subject or a technician, the stimulus delivered bystimulus applicator 40 causes the subject's eyelid to close prior to theadministration of a skin care treatment by the treatment applicator 36.In some embodiments, the stimulus delivered by stimulus applicator 40causes the subject's eyelid to close just prior to the initiation and/oradministration of a skin care treatment by the treatment applicator 36.In these or other embodiments, the administration of the stimuluscontinues throughout the duration of the skin care treatment. As aresult of these aforementioned embodiments, a subject's eye-lids areforced close to prevent exposure during the skin care treatment.

Still referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the body 24 houses the operatingstructure of the appliance. As shown in block diagrammatic form in FIG.2, the operating structure in one embodiment includes a treatment unit52, a stimulus generator 56, a power source 60, such as a rechargeablebattery, and a treatment control 64. The treatment unit 52 inconjunction with the treatment applicator 36 forms a treatment device 68and the stimulus generator 56 in conjunction with the stimulusapplicator 40 forms a stimulus device 70. In some embodiments, a powercord coupled to the power supply supplies power via a “mains” powersource.

The treatment control 64 includes an on/off button configured andarranged to selectively deliver power from the power source 60 to thetreatment device 68 and the stimulus device 70. In some embodiments, thetreatment control 64 may also include a treatment switch 74 coupled tocontrol circuitry, such as a programmed microcontroller or processor,which is configured to control the administration of the stimulus by thestimulus device 70 and the skin care treatment by the treatment device68. In some embodiments, the treatment control 64 includes a timer 80,which can be circuitry based or software based. The timer, wheninitiated by the treatment switch 74, assures that the administration ofthe stimulus precedes the administration of the treatment by asufficient amount (e.g., approximately 80 milliseconds or greater). Inother words, the timer 80, in conjunction with the treatment control 64,is programmed to, or comprises logic that, first causes administrationof the stimulus to occur and then shortly thereafter, causes theadministration of the skin care treatment to occur.

In some embodiments, the stimulus device 70 can administer a stimulusthat includes but is not limited to a flash of light, a puff of air, aburst of sound or pressure, etc., that causes the subject's eye toclose. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the stimulus device 70administers a puff of air. The puff of air can be generated by anysuitable mechanism, including a fan, a blower, a piston, a piezoelectricdevice, a pump, compressed gas, among others. The air can be suppliedthrough one or more vents 94 in the body 24.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the stimulus generator 56 of thestimulus delivery device 70 includes a piezoelectric fan 86 operativelymounted in a chamber 90. A vent or other inlet/outlet 94 is positionedadjacent the fan 86 so that movement of the fan 86 draws air into thechamber 90 from exteriorly of the body 24, directs the air through thechamber 90, and discharges the air out of the stimulus applicator 40,which can include an outlet 96. In some embodiments, the fan 86 and theoutlet 96 are cooperatively configured such that a minimum air velocityexiting the stimulus applicator 40 is approximately 0.4 m/s with anairflow rate of, for example, approximately 3 cc/s or greater. As shownin the embodiment of FIG. 4, the stimulus applicator 40 can include anozzle 116.

The treatment device 68 may include any suitable components in order tocarry out selected skin care treatments including but not limited tochemical, light, ultrasound, heat, magnetic or RF treatment,iontophoresis, phonophoresis, microdermabrasion, among others. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 3, the treatment device 68 administers achemical spray. In that regard, the treatment unit 52 may include achemical spray pump and internal fluid reservoir. In this embodiment,the chemical spray pump is connected in fluid communication with thetreatment applicator 36, which can include an outlet 98, via feedconduit 100. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the treatment applicator36 can include a nozzle 118, which in some embodiments can be orientatedat a relative angle a to the nozzle 116 of stimulus applicator 40 inorder for the spray envelope 124 from the treatment nozzle 118 to becontained by or lie completely within the air flow envelope 128 of thestimulus nozzle 116. In some embodiments, an additional or alternativeexternal fluid source can be coupled in communication with the spraypump.

In use, upon activation of the switch 74, the treatment control 64operates the fan 86 so that: (1) air exits the outlet 96 at a velocityof 0.4 m/s or greater and for a duration of 80 milliseconds or longer;and (2) the skin care treatment is administered by the device 68 atleast 80 milliseconds or longer after the stimulus, e.g., air, is firstdischarged from the outlet 96. In some embodiments, continued stimulusfrom the stimulus device 70 can be administered to maintain a closed-eyecondition.

It should be noted that for purposes of this disclosure, terminologysuch as “upper,” “lower,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” “inwardly,”“outwardly,” “inner,” “outer,” “front,” “rear,” etc., should beconstrued as descriptive and not limiting the scope of the claimedsubject matter. Further, the use of “including,” “comprising,” or“having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the itemslisted thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items.Unless limited otherwise, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” and“mounted” and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompassdirect and indirect connections, couplings, and mountings.

The principles, representative embodiments, and modes of operation ofthe present disclosure have been described in the foregoing description.However, aspects of the present disclosure which are intended to beprotected are not to be construed as limited to the particularembodiments disclosed. Further, the embodiments described herein are tobe regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. It will beappreciated that variations and changes may be made by others, andequivalents employed, without departing from the spirit of the presentdisclosure. Accordingly, it is expressly intended that all suchvariations, changes, and equivalents fall within the spirit and scope ofthe present disclosure, as claimed.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:
 1. A skin care apparatusfor treating an area adjacent a subject's eye, comprising: a body; atreatment device carried by the body; a stimulus device carried by thebody; a treatment switch; and a treatment control coupled to thetreatment device and the stimulus device, wherein the treatment control,when signaled by the treatment switch, is configured to cause thestimulus device to generate a stimulus and to administer the stimulus atthe subject's eye suitable for closure thereof, and thereafter, isconfigured to cause the treatment device to administer a treatment tothe area adjacent the subject's eye.
 2. The skin care apparatus of claim1, wherein the stimulus device includes a stimulus generator that isconfigured to generate a stimulus.
 3. The skin care apparatus of claim2, wherein the stimulus is one of a flash of light and a burst of sound,pressure, or air.
 4. The skin care apparatus of claim 1, wherein thetreatment includes a chemical spray.
 5. The skin care apparatus of claim1, wherein the stimulus device includes a stimulus generator and anapplicator.
 6. The skin care apparatus of claim 5, wherein the stimulusgenerator includes one of a fan, a blower, a piston, a piezoelectricdevice, a pump, and a source of compressed gas.
 7. The skin careapparatus of claim 1, wherein the treatment control causes the stimulusdevice to administer the stimulus for a duration of 80 milliseconds orlonger.
 8. The skin care apparatus of claim 7, wherein the treatmentcontrol causes the treatment device to administer the treatment at least80 milliseconds after initiation of stimulus administration.
 9. The skincare apparatus of claim 8, wherein the treatment is selected form agroup consisting of microdermabrasion, chemical treatment, lasertreatment, ultrasound, and cosmetic cleaning.
 10. The skin careapparatus of claim 1, wherein the stimulus device includes a stimulusnozzle, and wherein the stimulus is administered via the stimulusnozzle.
 11. The skin care apparatus of claim 10, wherein the treatmentdevice includes a treatment nozzle, and wherein the treatment isadministered via the treatment nozzle.
 12. The skin care apparatus ofclaim 11, wherein the treatment nozzle produces a treatment envelope andthe stimulus nozzle produces a stimulus envelope.
 13. The skin careapparatus of claim 12, wherein the treatment envelope is containedwithin the stimulus envelope.
 14. A method for treating an area adjacenta subject's eye, the method comprising: administering a stimulus at thesubject's eye; and, thereafter administering a treatment to the areaadjacent the subject's eye.
 15. The method of claim 14, whereinadministering a stimulus includes: generating a stimulus; and deliveringthe stimulus at the subject's eye sufficient to close the subject's eyevia reflex.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein administering a stimulusincludes: administering the stimulus for a duration of 80 millisecond orlonger.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein administering the treatmentincludes: administering the treatment at least 80 milliseconds afterinitiation of stimulus administration.